Owls Fall to East Carolina in AAC Opener

Friday, September 27

Boca Raton, Fla.

6 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

8-5,0-1AAC

East Carolina

8-3,1-0AAC

East Carolina

Fla. Atlantic

Photo by: Rick De Paiva

9/27/2024 10:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic Owls opened up AAC play on Friday night, falling in a four-set battle, 3-1, against the East Carolina Pirates inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.

The Owls fall to 8-5 overall and 0-1 in AAC play, while the Pirates move to 8-3 on the season and 1-0 in league play.

FLORIDA ATLANTIC 1 – EAST CAROLINA 3

After battling through a 4-3 Florida Atlantic lead, the Owls scored eight unanswered points to lead 12-3 in the opening frame. Florida Atlantic extended its lead to 11, leading 21-10 late in the first. The Pirates tried to battle back, going on a 4-1 run to bring things back within eight, however, the Owls closed the set on a 3-1 run to capture the 25-15 win and lead by one, 1-0.

The Owls opened the second on a 7-5 run, but the Pirates answered back with a 4-0 run to take the lead, 9-7. Florida Atlantic kept things even through a 16-16 tie, however, East Carolina produced an 8-4 run to hold set point at 24-20. The Owls tried to rally, scoring three unanswered to close back within one, 24-23, but ECU scored one final kill to take the second, 25-23, and even the match at one apiece, 1-1.

Florida Atlantic kept things within one early in the third, 6-5. However, the Pirates went on a 9-4 run to lead 15-9 at the third-period media timeout. The Owls just couldn't find an answer to the Pirates in the third as East Carolina won the third, 25-11, and took the 2-1 lead.

East Carolina opened the fourth on an 8-4 run to spark a Florida Atlantic timeout. The Owls got three back to close within one after a trio of Pirate errors, 8-7. Florida Atlantic continued to battle within one through a 14-13 ECU lead after a kill from Kayla Richardson, however the Pirates recorded back-to-back points to lead 16-13 as the Owls called another timeout. East Carolina eventually took the match, 3-1, outscoring the Owls 9-6 to close out the fourth set, 25-19.

STATS & NOTES

Madison Dyer and Natalie Depaula led the Owls offensively with 11 and 10 kills, respectively.
Romina Cornelio led the Owls in digs, recording a season-high 12 digs, and Victoria Hensley dished out a match-leading 42 assists.
The Owls are now 2-2 all-time against the Pirates

UP NEXT

Florida Atlantic will look to bounce back on Sunday, Sept. 29, as they close out their AAC-opening weekend against the Charlotte 49ers. First serve is set for 4 p.m. inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.

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